Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Lightened Orange Chicken

Well it has been a whirlwind couple of weeks/weekends!  With our first bridal shower, my bachelorette plus quick trips to Miami and to OU and busy work weeks then being sick then Easter oh and then another bridal shower I have just been too tired to post!  But I've got a slew of local foodie moments lined up for you all in the coming weeks plus some new recipe favorites.  So let's get started shall we?

Ever have one of those hankerings for take out but don't actually want to spend the money or extra calories on said takeout?  Happens to me a lot, so I try to find healthier and budget friendly options to satisfy these pesky cravings so our calorie splurges can be spent elsewhere (aka Local Foodie Moments!).  Chris is an Orange Chicken fan, I'm not so much but I thought I'd make this lightened version for him since he kept mentioning we hadn't had Chinese in awhile.  Since I used fresh squeezed orange juice it had a very orangy tang but it was still pretty tasty.

Lightened Orange Chicken
(makes 2 servings)

Ingredients:
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed into bite sized chunks
- 2 Tbsp. chicken stock
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. honey
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 1/2 Tbsp. orange zest
- 2 Tbsp. fresh orange juice
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 tsp. Sriracha (add more or less depending on your spicy preference)
- pinch red pepper flakes
- olive oil for cooking
- sesame seeds for garnish if desired
- white rice, cooked (I typically make 1 to 1/2 cups)
- 2 cups broccoli, steamed

Instructions:
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add chicken and cook until cooked through (8-10ish minutes).  Remove from skillet and set aside.
- While chicken is cooking, mix together chicken stock, honey, garlic, orange zest, orange juice, soy sauce, Sriracha and red pepper flakes.


- Pour mixture into skillet after removing the chicken.  Reduce heat to a low simmer, stirring often.
- Let sauce cook until its reduced/thickened, add chicken back in and mix to coat.


- Serve over rice and steamed broccoli, sprinkle with sesame seeds if desired.
- Enjoy!

The wedding is just a few short weeks away so my apologies if content is a little slow!  Next up I'll be sharing our most recent trip to the Pint House, where we were invited to a private local blogger dinner.

Cheers!
Steph